Page 45 of How to Tempt an Earl

“I did what was most efficient to ensure my success at the ball.”

Her eyes narrowed, the first true sign of her fury. “Efficient! Forget Lady Crowley’s ball. I no longer want, nor expect, you to attend. Your proper entry into Society will be at your wedding.”

He drummed his fingers on the armrest of his leather chair. “No one needs to know about tonight.”

She looked at him as if he were a simpleton. “It’s too late. I saw her. Lady Taddlesworth saw her.” The woman was seated in the drawing room waiting for mother and son to speak in Ian’s study before they joined her.

Meanwhile, Ian had summoned another carriage to take the two women home. They couldn’t leave fast enough in his opinion. His thoughts kept returning to Grace. He could imagine her torment. They’d been caught in an erotic embrace by not one, but two Society matrons. She’d also drunk too much wine and would no doubt feel the ill effects tomorrow.

What was she thinking now? She shouldn’t be alone, shouldn’t have to handle tonight’s troublesome events by herself.

Ian’s gaze narrowed. “Lady Taddlesworth is your friend. Ensure her silence.”

The countess gave a humorless laugh. “No one can ensure anyone’s silence, least of all Lady Taddlesworth’s. She is preparing Ellie and Olivia for their upcoming Seasons so that I could eventually go to my sister in Bath. Lady Taddlesworth is a paragon of propriety and well-respected in Society. She would not be able to keep this secret, even if she truly desired to do so, which she undoubtedly will not.”

Ian’s mind spun as he tried to negotiate a way out of this mess. “Miss Ashton wasn’t here unchaperoned.”

“Oh?”

“My housekeeper is present.”

“Your housekeeper?”

“Yes. A widow. Surely that’s sufficient. Tell Lady Tattletale that she is Grace’s aunt and her chaperone.”

“It’s Lady Taddlesworth, and no, she will not believe such an outrageous tale. It is well after midnight. There is only one reason a young, unmarried lady would be present in a bachelor’s home. Not only is a housekeeper not a proper chaperone, but you forget that Miss Ashton was caught in your heated embrace.”

Damn. If Ian hadn’t been so distracted by Grace, he wouldn’t have opened the front door, but would have gone out the servant’s entrance. He would have heard the carriage, their approaching footsteps, heard something.

At Ian’s silence, she continued. “As the earl, it is your duty to secure the succession by marrying well and producing the next generation of Castleton heirs.”

“I had not planned to marry anyone,” he said irritably.

She ignored him. “I had hoped for you to wed the Duke of Desmond’s daughter, but I am willing to settle with the daughter of a baron.”

“It is not your choice,” he said, his voice terse.

Her lips thinned, her color high. “Oh, but it is. You may recover from such gossip, but Miss Ashton never will. She will be ostracized by Society. Are you that cruel?”

He pictured Grace moments before they were discovered. Her full lips glossy, her blue eyes glazed as she looked up at him and brazenly asked if he would kiss her. Her soft, warm body as she pressed her curves against him.

Christ. He’d wanted to do much more than simply kiss her and touch her. He’d fiercely wanted her naked and writhing beneath him.

He still did.

But Grace was a true lady, and she deserved to be treated as one. She’d met his sisters, and from their brief encounter, she’d learned things about them that he’d never known. Ellie hated the piano but liked to read. She was more like him than he’d realized. Olivia disliked singing but wanted to ride. Maybe she was more like Matthew who always loved to recklessly race his horses. Right to the end of his life. Because of that chance meeting, Grace had changed from having to help him to wanting to help him succeed. Could he throw her to the wolves?

An unfamiliar, heavy feeling constricted in his chest. He knew firsthand how cruel Society could be. But to marry?

“It’s not just Miss Ashton who will suffer the consequences of social ruin,” the countess said. “Ellie and Olivia will be harmed by your actions tonight.”

“You go too far. A scandal will not taint them, only myself and Miss Ashton.”

Her eyes flashed with a sheen of purpose. “Don’t be difficult. What of rumors of your involvement with your brother’s death? You may not think I’m aware, or that they are of concern now, but they are.”

Ian froze. He couldn’t believe she was dragging Matthew’s death into their conversation. “Are you suggesting you believe the malicious gossip of magpies?”

“It doesn’t matter what I believe. The talk, combined with tonight’s gossip, will ensure wagging tongues follow your sisters at every Society function for years. What respectable family would want their son to marry into ours? You must think of your sisters.”